More on Great Paywall of Worcester

Well, it's day two of the new model. The comments are pretty fierce and overwhelmingly angry.
We learned in the note from the Telegram's publishers that "We have great faith in our professionally trained journalists who set out each day to bring you the latest news and information touching your lives." (See Telegram & Gazette to charge for online local news for more.)
So, with the first time that the Telegram's premier columnist is available in the new model, you can well imagine what goodness is awaiting us.

Without Jeff on guard, we have to find these things by ourselves.

More on Great Laws

It seems that there is some research going on to confirm the Hakkarainen Law of Great Events. As previously noted, this law says that, in any great event in your life, someone important to you will let you down or be absent.
Yesterday, the New York Times published an essay, Coping With Crises Close to Someone Else’s Heart by Harriet Brow, about this phenomenon. While dealing with illnesses of her daughters and the dying and death of her mother, Brown wrote,

For the most part, we were blessed with support and love; friends ran errands for us, delivered meals, sat in hospital waiting rooms, walked, talked and cried with us.
But a couple of friends disappeared entirely. During the year we spent in eating-disorder hell, they called once or twice but otherwise behaved as though we had been transported to Mongolia with no telephones or e-mail.

"Other people’s reactions are multifaceted,” writes one psychologist . “There’s no formula, and it’ll change from person to person." It may be that the vanishing friends were paralyzed first by their feelings of helpless and then by the guilt of being paralyzed in the first place.
There's a summary of the article as well as some insightful comments at the Well blog - When Friends Disappear During a Health Crisis.

More on politics

One of the toughest things about reading political analysis these days is trying to filter the snarky, sarcastic, or ironic commentary from the straight-forward loony. I suspect that I know the answer to this one, but I'll ask for your help.

...when it comes to doing what is right versus doing what is expedient, you do what is expedient so that you can get reelected and do what is right in the second term.
via Obama, the one-term president - Roger Simon - POLITICO.com

Simon's point is that President Obama is on track to be a one-term president unless he decides to quit first. 

A candidate says, as Bobby Kennedy did, “Some men look at things the way they are and ask why? I dream of things that are not and ask why not?”
A president says: “What do the polls say?”

Citing Eisenhower's decision to send troops to Little Rock or Lincoln to talk about slavery, both actions being off-message to the public sentiment, Simon continues

... But what’s so wrong about being off message if you are right about the issue?
This: An unidentified chief of staff to a “politically vulnerable House Democrat” told James Hohmann and Maggie Haberman of POLITICO that Obama’s statement “probably alienates a lot of independent voters” and “there are a lot of [Democrats] who are spooked in tough districts today” and “a lot of Republicans licking their chops right now.”
And what’s the point of doing the right thing if your party is going to lose seats because of it?

I believe that Simon is being ironic. His words and tone are so close to the sentiments of so many other analysts that I don't think that an intelligent person could write this way in seriousness without throwing up just a little bit.

More on health care, Canadian edition

Why, oh, why won't they think of the children? I mean, "Well what doctor has been schooled about the rate of microwave infections?" (CBC News - Toronto - Ont. parents suspect Wi-Fi making kids sick.)
It seems that one Canadian university has already suspended its use of wireless Internet connections because of alleged health risks.

The purpose of this policy is to limit wireless connectivity based on the “precautionary principle” as there are numerous scientific studies that demonstrate a basis for concern that continuous or frequent long-term exposure to the non-ionizing radiation of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) could have adverse health effects.
via WiFi and Cellular Antennae Policy | Lakehead University

Now, parents at various Ontario schools want the schools to remove the wireless hookups and replaced them with wired connections. "These kids are getting sick at school but not at home," said one parent.
Let's see. Kid at home says, "I don't want to go to school. It's, um, making me sick. It must be a microwave infection." Hmm.
In the meantime, be sure to add aluminum or aluminium foil, to your back-to-school shopping list.

photo via On the Effectiveness of Aluminium Foil Helmets: An Empirical Study

More on healthcare

At last check, Senator David Vitter (R-LA) is not a doctor. He is a smart guy, a Rhodes Scholar and such. Nevertheless, he says that the FDA's decision not to approve Avastin as a treatment for late-stage breast cancer is the beginning of death panels.

"I fear this is the beginning of a slippery slope leading to more and more rationing under the government takeover of health care that is being forced on the American people."
via US breast cancer drug decision 'marks start of death panels' - Telegraph

Never mind that a study of Avastin was suspended last year because patients in the trial were developing congestive heart failure at a rate too high to be acceptable. (Roche Says Avastin Cancer Study Enrollment Suspended (Update2) - Bloomberg.). The drug's manufacturer, though, did say that the occurrence of congestive heart failure is "consistent with what we’ve seen in previously reported rates for Avastin and the drug’s U.S. prescribing information."
Also, in a bit of subtlety regarding the drug's benefit, we learn that while the amount of time that breast cancer does not worsen is increased with the addition of Avastin to the chemotherapy regimen (Roche's Avastin helps slow breast cancer in study | Reuters.),  the overall time until the patient dies is not improved.

The original study that supported Avastin's approval showed adding the drug to paclitaxel added 5½ months to median progression-free survival. The new studies show a smaller impact on progression-free survival of less than a month to 2.9 months depending on the treatment group. The studies showed more side effects among women being treated with Avastin. None of the studies showed a survival benefit in favor of Avastin. The panel unanimously said the follow-up studies didn't confirm the clinical benefit seen in the original study.
via FDA Panel Says Avastin's Breast Cancer Indication Should Be Removed - WSJ.com

So, the FDA is removing its recommendation that Avastin no longer be used off-label because a) it doesn't improve patient survival rates even if it does slow the progression of the disease and b) the side effects put the patient at much greater risk than the disease it purports to treat.
All this because President Obama wasn't born in America.

This new model is not starting well

This morning, the Telegram and Gazette begins its new model for access to local content on the telegram.com site.
The new model is articulated on this page:

via New telegram.com model begins today (Screen capture at 6:20AM on 8/16/2010.

Yesterday's home-delivered paper included a letter from Anthony J. Simollardes, Director of Readership & Circulation at the Telegram, also announcing the change. (Here's the letter.) In brief, because we still subscribe to the printed version of the paper, we'll continue to have full access to the content on telegram.com.
Well, um, thanks.
After I call the toll-free number to verify my print subscription, I'll be back with some more on this topic. In the meantime, I'm going to go out in the rain to pick up our newspaper which the new carrier has left at the end of the driveway, instead of on the porch. That's another call I'll have to make.
---
6:47 AM update: after a 20-second wait at the toll-free number, a very pleasant customer service rep provided me with the information I needed (my account number) and I have been confirmed as an online subscriber.

Why Holden needs three national pharmacy chains

Another in the occasional series about Holden's need for three national pharmacy chains.
---
It's not easy to figure out which is the better value for a pre-paid Visa card.
Walgreens charges a flat $3.99.

Rite-Aid charges more, but gives you a credit for that amount if you use the card in their store.

Whichever one you choose, you can use your card at CVS, particularly if you want the hair of your black girl to look more like a white girl's:

For more information, see Soft & Beautiful - Just For Me! - No-Lye Relaxer for Children

On this solemn day

Most people in this country have been born in the years since Elvis died¹. He has become, even among fans, a caricature of a performer - too-tight white suit, snarling lips, sideburns, 'n such. He continues to make money long after his passing - Jar of Elvis Presley's Hair Auctioned.
If you listened to his early stuff, you'd learn that his musical instincts were sharp and profound. He absorbed country, blues, gospel, rhythm and blues, rockabilly, and so much more, shaping and shaped by American popular music.  He knew his stuff. He was, in that regard, matched only by his contemporary, Johnny Cash. And while Cash found a lifeline in the Carter family, Elvis drowned, came back up, and then drowned again.
I knew one Elvis impersonator, not well, but enough to follow his career. He got sober quite a few years ago, at which point his career really got going. He works regularly in Vegas and around here.
Another Elvis impersonator, named Elvis Presley, is running for governor in Arkansas. "People will find out I'm for real," he's said. (via Elvis Presley Running for Governor of Arkansas - Lowering the Bar).
My favorite Elvis tune? I like the stuff from the Million Dollar Quartet recordings, a loose session with Elvis, Cash, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis. The tape machine was running in 1956 when these guys ran through a bunch of material from Southern gospel to Chuck Berry to Little Richard. Here's one, Farther Along.

Crime in suburbia

From The Landmark (subscription required):

[Editor's note: There were 14 suspicious items this week.]

Holden

Monday, August 2

10:19 a.m. Disturbance between youth and parent, Davis Hill School
11:52 a.m. Person in lobby asking about bike found at town pool
12:39 p.m. Suspicious male, Cedar Rd.
2:40 p.m. Black bear, Princeton St.
3:29 p.m. Suspicious male with backpack, Main St.
3:49 p.m. Caller reports speeding blue Pontiac grazed her dog and almost hit children, Princeton St.
4:11 p.m. Walk-in reports car cut her off near Hess Station, gave her the finger and used vulgar language
4:33 p.m. Bear ripping up trash in yard, Elmwood Ave.
6:09 p.m. Large black bear in yard, Elmwood Ave.
9:46 p.m. Wheel fell off car, Main St./Kendall Rd.

Tuesday, August 3

1:03 a.m. Door ajar, Malden St.
8:50 a.m. Bear, Dominitas Dr.
12:27 p.m. Several drawings of male genitalia spray painted on Salisbury St at Seasons neighborhood
12:40 p.m. Possum injured, Wood St.
2:50 p.m. Man walked into house for no reason, told resident his name and left, Rice School condos
3:43 p.m. Person at station for firearms paperwork
5:45 p.m. Suspicious older man walking on Malden St.
8:44 p.m Barking dog, Shrewsbury St./Birchwood Dr.

Wednesday, August 4

10:04 a.m. Bear on Wood St.
1:10 p.m. Caller reports two kids came to her door, looking for work. She did not know them from the neighborhood, Lovell St.
4:39 p.m. Black bear, Elmwood Ave.
4:56 p.m. Husky dog loose, Brennan Way. Neighbors afraid dog bit a child a while ago.
7:22 p.m. Neighbors in dispute about previous complaint. Dog under quarantine
9:29 p.m. Youths lighting fireworks, Malden St.
10:08 p.m. Tall male walked up back steps of house, peered in screen door and took off, Doyle Rd.

Thursday, August 5

12:07 a.m. Suspicious vehicle, Salisbury St./Mark Cir.
5:18 a.m. Three youths on golf cart, Holden Hills
9:06 a.m. Bear sitting in driveway, Nottingham Dr. Advised the bear will leave, and take in all bird feeders
11:49 a.m. Passer-by reports playpen with two small children in it, Reservoir St. Officer checked, children are being watched by older children.
5:48 p.m. Dispersed group of youths at senior center
7:07p.m. Neighbor complaining about loud music next door, Sawyer Ln.

Friday, August 6

2:01 a.m. Suspicious vehicle parked on side of Jennifer Dr.
8:10 a.m. Large black bear on rear deck, Wachusett St.
8:53 a.m. Black bear in yard, Wood St.
9:08 a.m. Light Dept. reports finding large trash bag full of clothes, personal items and note
12:31 p.m. Four teen males setting small fires at playground, Salisbury St.
10:30 p.m. Call reporting possible shots in area, Flagler Dr.
10:52 p.m. Report of fireworks from Mountview School, possibly from roof.

Saturday, August 8

1:03 a.m. Male in dark clothing traveling southbound on bicycle, Main St. Was rude and uncooperative with officer
8:46 p.m. Two males fighting in parking lot of Holden pool, left in separate vehicles
6:52 p.m. Male riding motorbike, Shrewsbury St./Doyle Rd.
9:13 p.m. Drag racing southern end of Main St.

Sunday, August 9

3:49 a.m. Car in lot at library. Owner is returning books.
7:31 p.m. Car v. tree, Manning St.
10:09 p.m. Loud motorcycle racing, Mason Rd.

Paxton

Monday, August 2

10:32 a.m. Two motorcyclists spray-painting roadway, Grove St. Was done for ride over weekend
1:40 p.m. Loose dog in yard, Tanglewood Rd.
2:58 p.m. Two suspicious males in area of Illigs Pond, West St.
3:23 p.m. Person wants to speak with officer about speeding trucks on Grove St. going to fields
3:26 p.m. Request that drivers of trucks going to Grove St. field be spoken to about speeding
6:24 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Asnubumskit Rd.

Tuesday, August 3

2:05 p.m. Motorist advising of leaf blower on side of road, Suomi near Marshall St.
4:09 p.m. Report that someone was inside home on Camp St. that shouldn’t be there. No one found

Wednesday, August 4

1:23 p.m. Female lying on side of Richards Ave./Church St. No one found

Thursday, August 5

7:11 p.m. Person at station to be fingerprinted, Pleasant St.
11:15 p.m. Police check on vehicle in parking lot, Pleasant St.

Friday, August 6

12:09 a.m. Male walking in area of garage, Pleasant St.
10:15 a.m. Geese in yard for few days, won’t leave, Grove St.
4:30 p.m. Resident at station requesting to be fingerprinted, Pleasant St.
5:54 p.m. Police get goat out of roadway, Grove St.

Saturday, August 7

2:17 a.m. Suspicious vehicle in parking lot, Pleasant St.
5:56 a.m. Spencer PD reports that someone stretched Glad wrap, head high, across Thompson Pond in Spencer at town line
2:58 p.m. Loose dog, neighbor later came and got dog, Indian Hill Rd.
11:36 p.m. Complaint of loud party, Grove St.

Sunday, August 8

1:44 p.m. People in lobby to speak with officer about ongoing issue, Pleasant St.
7:03 p.m. Suspicious vehicle, Pleasant St.

Rutland

Monday, August 2

7:40 p.m. Caller wants to speak with animal control officer about problem dog, Bushy Ln.
8:04 p.m. Multiple calls from residents about black bear in neighborhood, Clealand Cir.
9:53 p.m. Fox hit and is injured in middle of Main St./Pleasantdale Rd.

Tuesday, August 3

4:30 a.m. Disabled vehicle found to be in Paxton, Maple Ave.
6:55 a.m. Porcupine in road, Maple Ave./Emerald Rd.
7:15 a.m. Person wants to talk with officer about family member, Main St.
10:19 a.m. Complaint about noise, Edson Ave.
11:08 a.m. Missing girl’s bicycle, purple road runner
11:21 a.m. Keys locked in car, Bigelow Rd.
2:55 p.m. Loose black Labrador dog near school, Glenwood Rd.
4:36 p.m. Person riding four-wheeler up and down Jamie Ann Dr.
6:18 p.m. Unattended vehicle parked at common
6:41 p.m. Black Labrador found near Rail Trail, Indiana tags; family just moved here, Glenwood Rd.
8:24 p.m. Stray gray tiger cat, Wachusett St.

Wednesday, August 4

12:26 a.m. Male sleeping in vehicle, Barre Paxton Rd.
6:46 a.m. Suspicious vehicle parked in area, Bushy Ln.
12:43 p.m. Suspicious male in white van, Clealand Cir.
3:12 p.m. Barking dogs complaint, Newman Dr. Dogs barking very early in morning
7:55 p.m. Stray yellow Labrador in yard, Main St.
10:33 p.m. Two safes missing from residence, Nancy Dr.

Thursday, August 5

1:16 a.m. Barking dogs, Clearview Rd.
2:04 a.m. Dog running in neighborhood barking, Valley View Cir.
9:49 a.m. Missing rescue dog, Bethany Dr.
11:42 a.m. Worcester PD requests officer to execute warrant for threats to murder, Pommogussett Rd. Person doesn’t live there

Friday, August 6

2:45 p.m. Yard equipment fell off truck, Main St.
6:02 p.m. Black Angus cow, due to calf, missing for two days, Glenwood Rd.

Saturday, August 7

11:13 a.m. Person at station to pick up equipment that fell off truck, Main St.
12:25 p.m. Individuals riding dirt bikes in road, very noisy, Glenwood Rd.
8:46 p.m. Caller driving on Main St. says person in car threw several pounds of coffee onto her vehicle, almost causing her to crash

Sunday, August 8

8:50 a.m. Small dog missing, Pommogussett Rd.
2:38 p.m. Person almost hit dog, Emerald Rd.
9:40 p.m. Gunshots heard, Glenwood Rd.

Princeton

Monday, August 2

3:17 a.m. Caller reports seeing car door open, Calamint Hill Rd. N; Police close back hatch
9:28 a.m. Vehicle hit pothole and has flat tire, Main St.
12:22 p.m. Dog found wandering in Sterling Rd.
1:53 p.m. Person reports being yelled at by male and female in front of restaurant, Rte. 140 N
5:45 p.m. Open window at home, Beaman Rd. Police close window
5:50 p.m. Request for police to assist with male mountain biking on road to summit of mountain

Tuesday, August 3

8:17 a.m. Graffiti on concrete stairs, Boylston Ave.

Wednesday, August 4

4:24 p.m. Male riding a go-cart in Stagecoach Rd.

Thursday, August 5

10:15 p.m. Request for police to unlock gate so vehicle can get out, Mountain Rd.
11:20 p.m. Male knocked on door asking for flashlight, police officer requested, Mountain
Rd.

Friday, August 6

11:11 a.m. Child locked in vehicle, Coal Kiln Rd.
5:36 p.m. Large tree down blocking Beaman Rd.
6:58 p.m. Assist animal control officer with dog license issue, Calamint Hill Rd. N

Saturday, August 7

3:04 p.m. Black bear in yard, Sterling Rd.
3:52 p.m. Police assist with traffic for wedding, Mountain Rd.

Sunday, August 8

11:05 a.m. Police assist with traffic for charity motorcycle ride, center of town
7:59 p.m. Assist animal control officer with dog license issues, Beaman Rd., Laurel Ln.
10:35 p.m. Police transport person from Main St. to Brooks Station Rd.

Sterling

Monday, August 2

3:40 p.m. Officer wanted. One child bit another, Redstone Hill Rd.

Tuesday, August 3

4:15 a.m. Assist W. Boylston PD looking for male walking to Worcester
5:15 a.m. Unoccupied vehicle, flares put out, Redemption Rock Trl.
10:17 a.m. Missing yellow Labrador, Boutelle Rd. Dog returned home
4:13 p.m. Parking complaint, N. Row Rd.
8:13 p.m. Request for officer for dog biting floating buoys and sinking them, Hall Ave.

Wednesday, August 4

5:35 p.m. Suspicious vehicle in area known for illegal dumping, Newell Hill Rd.
7:49 p.m. Complaint about barking dog, Griffin Rd.

Thursday, August 5

1:40 a.m. Person requesting assistance with bat flying around house,Princeton Rd.
7:41 a.m. Cat struck and injured, brown tabby, Clinton Rd./Thomas Ln.
10:06 a.m. Stray orange cat, Sherwood Dr.
4:53 p.m.Siamese cat found in yard, Flanagan Hill Rd.
6:05 p.m. Large snapping turtle in middle of Flanagan Hill Rd.
8:12 p.m. Male beagle walking on Worcester Rd.

Friday, August 6

5:30 p.m. Suspicious motor vehicle, Upper N. Row Rd.
6:16 p.m. Pitbull mix dog in yard, Princeton Rd. Owner will pick up
9:29 p.m. Loose horse on Upper N. Row Rd.
10:09 p.m. Two horses jumped fence, Upper N. Row Rd.

Saturday, August 7

12:15 p.m. Cars with no stickers, Hall Ave.

Sunday, August 8

6:38 a.m. Car egged and tires flattened, Jill Ln.
10:52 a.m. Assist with bike rally, Rte. 62, Princeton
12:02 p.m. Large, black bear in pond in back yard, Holden Rd. Environmental Police notified
3:14 p.m. Caller found dog on side of road in Lunenburg. Animal control officer picked up dog
8:59 p.m. Four cars at home where people are away, Avery Ln
10:32 p.m. Suspicious black car parked on N. Cove Rd.